Disco-dancing vicar becomes web sensation

A PRIEST rounded off a traditional wedding ceremony in her
church by initiating a flash-mob dance.

Moments after pronouncing Gary and Tracy Richardson husband and
wife, in St Mary and St Martin, in Blyth, Nottinghamshire, the
Vicar, the Revd Kate Bottley, launched into a routine to "Everybody
Dance Now", by C+C Music Factory. The bride and groom joined in
with synchronised moves, and soon most of the 100-strong
congregation were moving, too.

A three-minute video of the dance has gone viral on the
internet. By midweek, it had received almost 300,000 hits, and
topped the BBC's most-viewed-clip list.

Mrs Bottley said that the idea had come up in conversation with
the couple as they planned the service, eight weeks before the
ceremony on 15 June. She said: "I asked them if there was anything
special they wanted to include, and Tracy joked that they should
have a flash-mob in the middle of the ceremony. I said 'Why not?'
and it went from there.

"The Church believes passionately in marriage and its
importance, but that doesn't mean there shouldn't be some room for
fun.

"They rehearsed their moves for eight weeks, and sent me a video
of what they were doing so I could get my part right. I think about
30 of their guests were in on it, too, but, as you can see from the
video, it soon caught on. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it, and
there was a huge round of applause after.

"Two elderly women did walk out in the middle, but Tracy assures
me it was just her Auntie Eileen taking Aunt Betty to the loo."

Mrs Bottley said reaction to the routine had generally been
good. "The Bishop congratulated me, and the Lord Lieutenant sent me
a message saying: 'Well done girl'.

"There has been some adverse comment, but, hey, David danced
naked before the Lord - at least I didn't do that. My daughter
Ruby, who is 11, was not too impressed. After all, what's worse
than your dad dancing at a party? Yes - it's your mum.

"This was a couple who did not come to church, and had no ties
to the parish, but wanted a traditional wedding. To qualify, they
came and worshipped with us for six months. They liked what they
found, and now they are regular members of the congregation. The
Church of England has a reputation of being a bit grumpy, but
that's not what we want."

Mrs Richardson is quoted as saying: "As soon as we met Kate, we
knew she was exactly the type of vicar we wanted to marry us. She
was amazing."